Marketing has definitely changed with time. It has evolved from a more traditional profile to be seen today as somewhat intrusive. Internet users are overwhelmed with advertising that almost forces them to buy the advertiser’s products. In turn, users are increasingly “alert” or believe less of what they see on the screen.
With ever decreasing attention span what do marketers do to increase their sales? All the digital businesses now rely on psychology to convince their prospects.
Do you want to know how they do it? Know the strategies to be able to apply them also in your company?
Well, here are the 7 most important psychological strategies.
1. Neuromarketing
In this article we do not want to talk about neuromarketing, although it is clear that psychology and this term are closely related. The neuromarketing is based on knowing the user’s profile and preferences and trying to adapt the framework of selling it.
Who am I addressing? What will your brain react to best? How will I best use your impulses?
All these answers are covered by this science, and there are some interesting points from which we can learn a lot.
2. Pure and hard psychology as a sales weapon
Let’s dive into behavioral psychology a little more along with marketing relationships. We will start with discussing what influences the other?
The idea is clear: make use of psychology to stimulate the user’s desire. For this and based on the opinion of several experts in the field, we infer the following premises that will be giving us a clue of where the shots will go:
- We trust more people with profiles similar to ours.
- We are curious about things.
- New and unfamiliar products attract our attention.
- If they ask us or introduce a doubt, they attract the attention of our brain.
- We like simple things.
- If we have a common enemy, we are friends.
Let’s look at each of the six in detail to see different applications of psychology in marketing .
Tip # 1. We trust more people with profiles similar to ours
Taken to marketing, this statement becomes a very powerful weapon to sell through your website.
Imagine that you are going to buy a product but you have some doubt about the reliability, the quality / price ratio or the honesty of the seller.
If there are real users similar to you on social networks or any other channel speaking well of the product, it will probably help you take the final step towards buying.
Who has not bought on Amazon and has read and re-read the opinions of the users? Who has not seen a comment on Facebook from a friend regarding a product and has decided to buy it or, at least, investigate it?
According to a study by Powerreviews.com , 95% of customers consult product reviews and opinions before making a purchase.
Advice: You can ask your buyers to write about your products on social networks and, in return, give them a prize in the form of a discount for future purchases. It is a double-edged sword, because in addition to influencing the decision of other potential buyers, you will be implementing a loyalty program.
Tip # 2. Pitch them your when they are most likely to buy
Now I get this question a lot? How do we find when they are most likely to buy? Thanks to automation you can easily use it to schedule your posts on social media at the appropriate time, when most of your customers are online or you can send them emails at the best time when they are most likely to open them. Increasing your conversions many fold, there are many tools to cover both these aspects like you can use hootsuite for your social media campaigns and active campaign to schedule your posts at the time when your customers are most likely to buy your products.
Tip # 3. We are curious about things
The economist George Loewenstein stated that there is a gap between what we know and what we want to know, and that our actions are aimed at closing it.
Taking advantage of this fact, wouldn’t it be nice to inspire the curiosity of a potential buyer? Why don’t you try to get his attention by showing him something visually appealing and end up completely convincing him by applying other techniques once you have him hooked?
If the packaging catches my eye, how can I not open it to discover what is inside?
Advice: Promote products on your website in a non-intrusive way, with eye-catching short descriptions that skip the usual script and encourage the user to visit the product file to discover more.
An eye-catching title and an inspiring or intriguing description can send clicks through the roof.
Tip # 4. New and unknown products catch our attention
Being exposed to something new and unfamiliar, increases the release of dopamine in our brain, which thinks a reward awaits us.
Why don’t we try to reinvent what has already been invented ? What if we created new better products to convince already loyal customers? What if we started generating new needs for buyers?
Advice: For both repeat customers and newcomers, create new products that have different applications . Another good idea is to renew, add changes or variations to existing articles.
Tip # 5. If they ask us or have a doubt, it attracts the attention of our brain
The first step to selling is to get the attention of the buyer.
To do this, putting ourselves in the role of being a person bombarded by banners, advertisements, pop-ups and other forms of advertising, what would you think if we tried not to directly sell our product to you but rather start with asking you a question?
For example: Imagine that you have an ecommerce store that sells gift items.
A good practice would be, both in your advertising and on the homepage of your website, to ask an intriguing question.
Advice: Generate questions that easily draw the attention of your potential client and give them visibility, either in your usual advertising channels or on your own website.
Tip # 6. We like simple things
The psychologist Daniel Kahneman affirmed that between the two solutions, the human being would always choose apparently the simpler one.
Straight to the point. To the mess, what would you say?
We do not want redundant information, as we could associate it with tricks to place a product that is not what it claims to be. We do not want complicated or elaborate things, but clean, simple information that explains what we are looking for. A clear value proposition.
Users value their time more and more and wasting it is not an option. Let’s not beat around the bush and don’t try to convince him with more than that is necessary. Simple always works best.
This applies to the product itself, to the images, to the texts, to the descriptions, to the advertisements, the landing pages, etc. The Evernote website is a clear example of a simple, clear and direct landing page.
Advice: Don’t over-curl the curl. If you have an e-commerce store, the main objective is to sell. Do not show anything that will not bring things of value to the user or you run the risk of attrition due to lack of confidence and seriousness.
Tip # 7. If we have a common enemy, we are friends
If you manage to connect emotionally with your user, you have earned it. A good way for him to trust you is to try to “create” a common enemy (issue) that you can help your audience solve. Personally, it is not a technique that I like, but it is effective.
A great example of this is the campaign that Apple launched years ago, when it decided to set its sights on PCs.
How many people who have owned an Apple do you know who have bought a PC again?
This, obviously, is more due to the performance, reliability and useful life of a Mac, but rest assured that when someone who has a Mac has to renew a phone, they will throw away their Apple “house brand” more than a Samsung or someone else.
Generating need
Human beings buy more and better when they have a need or problem to solve .
How do we find that need or problem of our future clients?
The first thing is to analyze your segment. The second thing is to make use of content marketing thanks to a blog for example, in addition to other types of resources that we have available.
We offer information of great value to the reader, experiences, advice, analysis, examples, without trying to sell anything directly, but to influence, little by little, their judgment based on quality and trust we gain.
Do you have an e-commerce store that sells dog food?
Tell your visitors stories of real dogs consuming your product. How a dog became a super dog. How its appearance improved. How he interacted more than ever with other animals during his walks. Bring the real cases and their stories closer to your potential buyers, whom you will win based on good arts, perseverance and not falling into intrusion.
If you are lucky enough to have a novel idea, you are already half way. You only have to draw the needs of your target by making a mark.
Invest in branding campaigns, show yourself to the world by all possible means and make yourself known. Don’t beg for a sale; If they see you and have a need, users will come alone and buy.
Conclusions
There are many ways to appeal to psychology to sell more.
Of all of them, the most effective – it has been fully demonstrated – is to communicate emotionally with a user and make him see the need to purchase your product. If your website sells common products, use these techniques to convince your visitors why they should buy from you and not from your competition.
Big data is the future and in this, advertising will be fully personalized.
Deep knowledge of the user will be essential to achieve an adequate conversion rate. Until we get to that point, follow these tips and sell more than ever with your website.
What do you think? Have you put any of these neuromarketing techniques into practice? Which one works best for you?
Aabhas Vijay is the founder of www.SMTPServers.co a dedicated email marketing blog, and as you can make from the site name he is an expert in SMTP Servers.
Psychology of websites stock photo by GaudiLab/Shutterstock
